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Spendthrift Farm Secures Breeding Rights To Met Mile Winner Vekoma

B. Wayne Hughes' Spendthrift Farm has acquired the breeding rights to multiple Grade 1-winning millionaire Vekoma. The 4-year-old son of leading sire Candy Ride captured the prestigious Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont on Saturday, staking his claim as one of North America's top racehorses in 2020.

“We are extremely excited about Vekoma and his future as a stallion. It's not often you see an elite racehorse that is by a Grade 1 winner and out of a Grade 1 winner,” said Ned Toffey, Spendthrift general manager. “Vekoma is a terrific blend of his sire Candy Ride and his Speightstown dam Mona de Momma, showing brilliance from six furlongs to a mile and an eighth and from ages two to four. There's sire power throughout the pedigree, with Vekoma's second dam being a sister to Mr. Greeley. You just will not find a better-bred son of Candy Ride. Vekoma proved he is one of the best horses in training with wins over good fields in the Carter and Met Mile, which have been two of the best performances we have seen this year. The combination of brilliance and pedigree is special.”

Trained by George Weaver for owners R. A. Hill Stable and Gatsas Stables, Vekoma has always been one of the top racehorses in his crop, capturing graded stakes wins at two, three and four. After breaking his maiden at first asking in 1:08 4/5 at Belmont, the talented chestnut stretched out to win the one-mile G3 Nashua at Aqueduct to complete an undefeated juvenile campaign. At three, Vekoma jumped onto the Triple Crown trail, finishing third to Code of Honor in the G2 Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream in his seasonal debut. He went on to score a dominant 3 1/2-length win in the 1 1/8-mile G2 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland, earning a berth into the Kentucky Derby.

This year, Vekoma has been perfect in three starts at three different racetracks, kicking off his 4-year-old season with a 3 3/4-length victory in Gulfstream's Sir Shackleton Stakes in March. Vekoma earned his first Grade 1 triumph in the form of a dazzling 7 1/4-length win in the G1 Carter Handicap at Aqueduct, earning a career-high 110 Beyer Speed Figure. Last Saturday, he validated his Carter performance with a front-running win in the aforementioned Met Mile, defeating Grade 1 winners Code of Honor and McKinzie, among others, while stopping the clock in a crisp 1:32 4/5 – just .15 seconds off the stakes record for the 129-year-old fixture in New York.

“Vekoma has been an outstanding talent since the moment we got him. He's such a special horse,” said Weaver. “We will take our time to enjoy this win, but Saratoga is the likely next place for him to run. We would like to put the horse in a position to become a champion.”

An earner of $1,245,525 to date, Vekoma was bred in Kentucky by Alpha Delta Stables. He is out of the Speightstown mare Mona de Momma who scored her biggest win as a racehorse in the G1 Humana Distaff on the Kentucky Derby undercard at Churchill. Vekoma's second dam, Society Gal, is a half-sister to successful sire Mr. Greeley.

Vekoma is the third Met Mile winner in the last four years that will take up stud duty at Spendthrift. Mor Spirit, the 2017 winner, and Mitole, the 2019 winner, both stand at the historic Lexington-based farm.

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Honor A. P. To Stand At Lane’s End Upon Retirement

Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby winner Honor A. P. (Honor Code–Hollywood Story, by Wild Rush) will be retired to Lane's End Farm upon the conclusion of his racing career, the farm announced today. The 3-year-old is from the first crop by his sire, who also stands at Lane's End, and is his highest earner.

Honor A. P. has finished first or second in each of his four starts, winning the G1 Santa Anita Derby in his last outing June 6, and establishing himself as a favorite for the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby.

“He's a horse that we have had an eye on since David Ingordo bought him as a yearling for Lee and Susan Searing's CRK Stable,” said Bill Farish. “He was a standout at Saratoga and at $850,000 ended up being the highest priced yearling in Honor Code's first crop. April Mayberry was quietly touting him while being broken and John Shirreffs has been high on him since he arrived at Santa Anita. We are very excited to secure another prospect from the A.P. Indy line. As is the case with most of our stallions, having a strong syndicate behind them is very important to their success. We are emboldened by the quality of the syndicate that has come together to support him. His looks, pedigree and his growing resume as a top racehorse gives him a great chance to be a successful sire.”

Honor A. P. debuted Aug. 17, 2019 at Del Mar, racing greenly to be second. He won his next start at Santa Anita in October as the 2-5 favorite, drawing away to win by 5 1/4 lengths. Before he could race in 2020, he suffered a stone bruise in February which briefly sidelined him, and he was second in his comeback and 2020 debut to Authentic in the G3 San Felipe on March 7. He subsequently defeated the previously unbeaten Authentic next out in the G1 Santa Anita Derby, while posting a 102 Beyer, the highest of any three-year old colt currently on the Derby trail.

His trainer, John Shirreffs, said, “I think we started seeing something in Honor A. P. when he started to gallop, and he started to lengthen his stride. If you ever see him, he just floats over the ground. He's only just begun to show his potential.”

“We named Honor A. P. in homage to his grandsire, the breed shaping A.P. Indy” said Lee Searing. “It has always been my goal to race a horse of this caliber and to stand him at Lane's End. I plan to keep an interest in Honor A. P. and help make him a top stallion.”

Honor A. P. is out of the multiple Grade 1 stakes winner Hollywood Story, who earned $1,171,105 in her career. He is a half-sibling to three black-type or graded black-type winners. Hollywood Story has produced yearling and weanling fillies by Curlin and Tapit, respectively, in the past two breeding seasons.

His sire, Honor Code, was one of 36 foals from the last crop of A.P. Indy and is currently the second-leading second-crop sire in the country. His dam's sire Wild Rush, like Honor Code a previous winner of the G1 Met Mile, hails from the Icecapade line, was eventually exported to Japan, and has produced 28 stakes winners out of his daughters. Honor A. P. will have one more start before the Kentucky Derby September 5.

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Belmont Winner Tiz The Law To Stand At Ashford Stud Upon Retirement

Last Saturday's impressive Grade 1 Belmont Stakes winner Tiz The Law will stand at Coolmore America's Ashford Stud on his retirement, but will continue to race for owners Sackatoga Stable throughout his racing career.

“Tiz The Law is the outstanding colt of his generation so we are obviously delighted he'll be coming here,” said Coolmore America manager Dermot Ryan. “From day one when he broke his maiden at Saratoga we have been watching him closely and he has everything one looks for in a stallion prospect. We are grateful to Jack Knowlton and his partners in Sackatoga Stable for letting us be a part of such an exciting horse, and also to Barclay Tagg, Robin Smullen and their team who have done a tremendous job with him. He's a Grade 1-winning juvenile and is now a Classic winner. Combined with his near perfect race record, he's very good-looking and is a very well-bred individual.”

His sire Constitution was second only to American Pharoah on the freshman sire table last year and leads the way in 2020, while Tiz The Law's dam Tizfiz was the winner of seven races including the Grade 2 San Gorgonio Handicap carrying top weight of 118 pounds.

“Tiz The Law is such a pleasure to be around, he impresses me every day with how easy he does everything, nothing is out of reach for him,” said trainer Barclay Tagg. “I have been training horses for such a long time and I have never had a horse like him, he makes my life very easy. We are looking forward to running him in the Travers then on to the Derby and Preakness. He has achieved so much already and is a very exciting horse for the future, I wouldn't change him for the world.”

Jack Knowlton, operating manager of Sackatoga Stables stated “Sackatoga Stable is pleased that Tiz The Law will stand at Coolmore America's Ashford Stud. It is an honor that he will become a part of the world's largest breeding operation of Thoroughbred racehorses. We are excited to see what Tiz The Law has in store on the track for the remainder of his 3-year-old year and beyond, and then look forward to his career as a stallion at Ashford.”

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Gainesway Secures Breeding Rights To Grade 1 Winner McKinzie

Gainesway Farm has purchased the breeding rights to four-time Grade 1 winner McKinzie (Street Sense-Runway Model, by Petionville). He will begin his stud career at Gainesway Farm upon his retirement from racing, the farm announced today.

“It is very exciting to stand a horse with McKinzie's credentials at Gainesway,” said director of bloodstock, Alex Solis II. “I don't believe there is a more exciting prospect than McKinzie out there. We are grateful to Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, Paul Weitman, and Bob Baffert for this fantastic opportunity.”

To date, McKinzie has earnings of over $3.4 million and has run first or second in 13 of 15 graded stakes during his career.

“McKinzie is a Grade 1 winner at two, three, and four from distances of seven furlongs to 1 1/8 mile,” said Gainesway general manager Brian Graves. “His speed, versatility, and soundness make him an absolute standout. His 10 individual triple-digit Beyer figures are truly impressive.”

McKinzie burst onto the scene as a juvenile, breaking his maiden on debut and was named a TDN Rising Star. He went on to win a Grade 1 at two when he took the Grade 1 Los Alamitos Cash Call Futurity.

At three, the colt picked up two more Grade 1 wins, the G1 Pennsylvania Derby, and the G1 Malibu Stakes.

At four, he added two more graded wins in the Alysheba Stakes at Churchill Downs and the G1 Whitney at Saratoga over dual Grade 1 winner Yoshida and eventual Breeders' Cup Classic winner and Eclipse champion Vino Rosso, where he ran a 111 Beyer and a 1/4 Ragozin figure.

“From day one, McKinzie has just been exceptional,” said his trainer, Bob Baffert. “He is a gorgeous physical with brilliant speed and stamina. I've only had one other horse in my career that has been able to accomplish what he's done by winning a Grade 1 at two, three, and four. It takes an extraordinary horse to achieve that.”

McKinzie is out of Runway Model, who is a dual Grade 2 winner that was third in the G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies at two, second in the G1 Ashland Stakes at three, and sold to Summer Wind Farm for $2.7 million.

“The plan with him going forward is to return in the July 4 Runhappy Met Mile,” said Baffert. “Hopefully, this will put us in an excellent position to earn Horse of the Year honors and champion older horse of 2020.”

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